Maverick
by twilightwanderer
Summary: Raven's final moments...


A/N: This is one of my first Zoid stories. It's short, but it's good. I hope you feel the same. Please R&R.  
  
MAVERICK  
  
He walked slowly through the bitter night. Each step felt like daggers to his weary body but he pressed onward. On his trek, his sole companion was the flitting shadows of dying candles in the slumbering houses he past. Pulling his cloak tighter around him, he faced the cold, deserted roads alone. He was alone. He was truly, utterly, miserably alone.  
  
He had no one to turn to, nothing to hold on to in this cruel world. His parents had been taken from him when he was but a child; his Organoid and possibly only friend, Shadow, had been seized ruthlessly away from him as well; even Lord Prozen, who was the farthest thing from a kind fatherly figure to him, had been torn away by the hands of death.  
  
Fighting tears, he tried to laugh at his pitiable self. The laughter was choked by the sadness welling up in his heart, if it could be called a heart. It felt as if a lump of charcoal had replaced that once life-giving organ. As a result of this substitution, he had lost his humanity amongst the bloody battlefields he had fought and won upon. He was no longer human.  
  
He crossed the border of the town and entered the desert plains on its outskirts. Immediately, he was blasted by a strong gust of wind. He braced against it, shielding his eyes from the stinging sand. The winds died down and he continued forward.  
  
On his journey no one welcomed him. The doors of their homes were shut and locked as he past them. No one offered him food, water, or shelter. The children were led away from him. He knew he deserved it for all the terrible things he had done to the people of Planet Zi. It was retribution for all the fear he had struck into their hearts. Yet hadn't Hiltz caused more damage and brought about more fear than he had? He didn't understand why the people couldn't be a little nicer to him. He had been human, at one point, just like them. He got hungry, tired, and thirsty just like they did. Yet, they treated him as if he were a monster. He sighed. They had every right to do so. He was a monster. This deepened the sadness within him.  
  
He sat on a boulder in the middle of the desert, resting for a moment. Off to the west, the sun was setting, splashing the sky with colors ranging from the deepest red to the softest pink, from the darkest purple to lightest blue. He took a moment to try and see the beauty in the sunset, but found he could not do so. He had lost his humanity, and with it, the ability to appreciate the beauty in the world around him.  
  
He waited until the two moons rose so he could walk in their guiding light. Suddenly, in the distance, he spotted something. He squinted, trying to figure out what it was. It was a tall silhouette against the wilderness, dark in comparison with the dunes of golden sand. It seemed to have four legs and a tail, with objects atop its back, and large incisors. With much contempt he realized it could only be a Zoid; one meddlesome Zoid in particular that belonged to his worthy adversary. It undoubtedly was Van Fleiheit's Blade Liger.  
  
His hands balled into fists at the thought of that cocky Zoid pilot. The flames of his hatred were fanned with sparks of jealousy. Van had everything. He had family, friends, and a happy childhood. He had been brought up in a loving home and was well cared for. Most of all, he still had his Organoid, Zeke. Raven couldn't help but hate him. Nothing but adversity had plagued his life while Van had not a clue. Because of this injustice, he swore to kill him. Without Shadow's help, that task seemed impossible. Oh well, I can always strangle him with my bare hands.someday.but not now. I'm not in the mood.  
  
The Liger faced his direction and he knew its heat-sensors had picked him up. It proceeded towards him at a leisurely pace, and he wasn't sure what to do. He didn't want to face Van now. All he wanted was to get away from him and his stupid Zoid as soon as possible. But there was no way of avoiding this confrontation, so he stood his ground, and waited for the Liger to close in.  
  
The Blade Liger's cockpit hissed open and a shocked Van could be seen in the pilot seat. "Raven?" he asked in disbelief. "Is that you?"  
  
He made to attempt to reply.  
  
"We all thought you had died when Hiltz deployed the Death Stinger's Charged Particle (Beam) in New Hellick's city. How did you manage to survive a direct blast?" Van seemed to think for a moment, then jumped down from the cockpit to stand before him. Raven smirked at the fact that he was taller than the Guardian Force Fighter.  
  
"Don't be shy, Raven. I know you can talk."  
  
"What's brought upon this sudden bravery, Van?"  
  
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Van looked confused.  
  
"Before, when I had my Geno Breaker, you would have never gotten out of your cockpit. Now that I don't have it or my Organoid, do you think I'm less of a threat to you?" He glared at him. Maybe now was a good time to initiate his revenge. "If that's your line of reasoning, think again." He lunged out at Van, sending the surprised boy to the ground.  
  
Punch after punch, he drove Van a little deeper into the sand. Coughing and sputtering as the grains found their way into his mouth, Van finally composed himself and tried to get Raven off but couldn't. He struggled underneath him, and Raven mused how similar it was to taming Shadow - a matter of dominancy. The remembrance of his Organoid weakened his grip and Van scooted out from beneath him.  
  
The two faced each other under the starry sky. Van wiped his mouth and said, "I don't want to fight you, Raven. I don't know why you're so determined to destroy me, but I don't want to fight you."  
  
"Am I not worth your time? Do I not make a worthy enough foe? Are you too proud to fight me?" Raven asked through ragged breaths. He came at him, throwing precise punches, which hit their mark. Van dodged the last one and gave Raven a strong sidekick, who stumbled back at the force of the blow but ignored any and all pain that flowed through him. He had one mission now, his final one - destroy Van Fleiheit or be destroyed. The latter was not an option.  
  
He charged at him again, but this time Van was ready. He moved aside, but Raven grabbed him by the ankle and pulled him down. The two boys began to tumble and wrestle on the desert plains, each trying to get the upper hand. Van attained it for a moment and slammed Raven's head down.  
  
"Why do you want to fight me so bad? I've never done anything to you, yet you keep coming after me, wanting to kill me. Why is that?" He slammed him down again. "Tell me!" When no reply came forth, he punched Raven hard in the jaw.  
  
A little blood trickled from his mouth and he mustered his strength to kick Van off. He crawled over to the fallen boy before he had a chance to rise and pinned him. He placed his hands on either side of Van's neck and began to squeeze. Van tried to pull him off, but to no avail. From all the Zoid piloting he had done, he hadn't had time to practice his hand-to-hand combating skills. Raven relished the way he squirmed, as his windpipes were being forced shut. This is almost too easy. Just a couple minutes more and Van will be dead once and for all.  
  
"Raven," Van managed to get out. Raven returned his attention to him and tightened his grip on his throat. Van gasped for breath and wheezed, "I know.don't really.want to.kill. Could.end.this.now...but," he struggled but managed to finish, "what'll.do.after I'm.gone?"  
  
That question made Raven pause for a moment as Van clawed at his hands, trying to release their deadly pressure. What will I do when he's gone? If Van's dead, what reason will I have to keep living? My whole purpose in life was to destroy him, so if I do, what then? What else is there, but death as well? His grip loosened a bit and Van could breath once more. He stayed motionless beneath Raven, letting the boy think things out.  
  
The former Maverick soldier's mind was warped. All these strong emotions - the hatred he felt at the sight of Zoids, the jealousy that pained him at the mention of Van's name, the coldness he had experienced his whole life - flooded to him and sucked him down into their whirlpool. He pulled on his hair, finally realizing he had no purpose. His life had never had any meaning. The world would be a better place without him.  
  
Sadly, he rose and moved a ways away from Van. His hazy eyes shaded by his dark bangs, he glanced over at the Guardian Force Fighter, who was brushing himself off. It isn't Van who needs to die. It's me. I realize that now. He's got a purpose in life; I have none. Once again, Van has what I never shall. I guess that's the way it was meant to be.  
  
Van came over to him, consolingly. "Raven, I."  
  
He raised his head, straightening his posture, and looked Van in the eye. "My worthy adversary, farewell. The world will never have to dread me again." He turned on his heels and ran full out into the night.  
  
"Raven! Wait! What are you talking about? Come back!"  
  
The world seemed to rush past him as he ran. He could hear Van starting up the Blade Liger, and was spurred to run faster than he ever had before. He knew this wasteland well, the Gaereil Plateau. It was the same terrain on which the three Guardian Force Zoids had come at him in Delta formation, near the same spot where the president of the Republic had been strapped inside a runaway DiBison heading towards the cliff leading down to a swift river, where Van and his Liger were thrown down. It was the same area in which the final battle had taken place between Hiltz and his Death Stinger and the Guardian Force Zoids. All these events happened in this one area. One more event would be added to the masses for the cliff would become his final resting place.  
  
The stomping of the Liger's feet pounded in his eardrums. He could hear Van calling out to him. "Raven! What's going on? Where are you going?"  
  
Raven continued to run, faster and faster. He squinted. He could see it now in the distance, outlined barely by the moons' strange orange glow. The cliff.  
  
Van, as he had guessed, had now realized what was about to occur and attempted to stop him. "Raven! Stop this. Don't do it. What I said before.I didn't mean anything like this by it. Let's talk about this reasonably. Stop. Don't do anything rash."  
  
Raven shook his head. He was getting closer, almost there. The Liger jumped in front of him, but he past right under it. He never stopped, never looked back. He could hear the water of the rushing river become louder and knew the time had come. He turned and faced the Blade Liger as it approached him. Van was still attempting to dissuade him from what he intended to do.  
  
"Raven, please, don't do this," was all Van could manage to say.  
  
The boy with hair of midnight just smiled. "Goodbye, Van." He leaned back and fell over the side of the cliff.  
  
"No!" He heard Van scream.  
  
Van Fleiheit, you were more a friend to me than you could ever realize. You put up with me for much longer than anyone ever could. And to think, we were supposed to be brothers. Heh, it's funny how life works. It's seems I'm going to the gateway alone. Maybe Shadow will be there waiting for me. Goodbye, Van. His last thoughts were of his childhood and of his loving parents. Maybe they'll be waiting to. As he hit the hard waters, his body sank to the bottom, colliding with boulders that were covering by the river's shifting surface. The water around him began to turn red with his blood and he smiled as the waterfall neared.  
  
As he fell down it, he felt the wind rushing up to greet him and the dark waters below beckoning to him, welcoming him. A sense of calm came over him as pummeled towards it. He closed his eyes as he was surrounded by darkness.  
  
He finally found the peace and warmth he had sought, cradled in the arms of Death. 


End file.
